The US is one of only two countries that allows pharmaceutical
companies to advertise directly to consumers (New
Zealand is the other outlier). While the ads help to increase
the awareness of a drug, it can also put doctors in charge
of prescribing them in a tough spot. That's why in
November 2015, the
American Medical Association called for a ban on
direct-to-consumer drug ads.

Their concern is that personifying illnesses, while it could help
the viewer remember the drug, might not help them capture
information like side effects associated with it.

Participants in the study will watch different commercials
featuring different cartoons and human actors and answer a
questionnaire.

According to
data collected by Kantar
Media, healthcare industry spending on ads was $14 billion in
2014, up 20% since 2011. This year, pharmaceutical ads made their
way into major TV events like the
Super Bowl and the Oscars. And these aren't typically
commercials for common ailments: lately the trend has skewed
toward specialty drugs, like those used to treat specific
cancers.

If the FDA finds that cartoons are not effective at communicating
risks associated with certain drugs, the days of overactive
bladders and football-playing toenail fungus during
commercial breaks could be over.